JOHN LE MESURIERBritish comedy actor John Le Mesurier, best known for his role as Sergeant Wilson in Dad’s Army, died on 15 November, 1983, aged 71.
Mr Le Mesurier delighted audiences with his hangdog expression and drooping eyes which made him instantly recognisable to generations of fans. The actor was born on 5 April, 1912 in Bedford to Charles Halliley, a solicitor, and Amy Le Mesurier. His mother was a descendent of an ancient family from Alderney in the Channel Isles. Soon after he was born the family moved to Bury St Edmunds in Suffolk.
Educated at Sherborne School in Dorset, he started acting at the age of 20, adopting his mother’s maiden name as his stage name. He joined the Fay Compton Studio of Dramatic Art, enrolling on the same day as Alec Guinness. His acting career was temporarily halted when he joined the Royal Tank Regiment in 1941. He served in the UK and India during World War II and was promoted to the rank of captain.
During his career he appeared in more than 100 films including Private's Progress, Brothers in Law, I'm All Right Jack, The Hound of the Baskervilles – all made in the 1950s. His 1960s movie credits Doctor in Love, The Pure Hell of St Trinian's, The Wrong Arm of the Law, The Pink Panther, Our Man in Marrakesh, The Wrong Box and The Italian Job. He also had an uncredited cameo in Ben Hur (1959) as a doctor.
He appeared in many films with Tony Hancock, as well as many episodes of the hit TV show Hancock’s Half Hour. His final film in 1980 was with Peter Sellers and was called The Fiendish Plot of Fu Manchu. His acting style was characterised by his good natured vagueness, which his friends often said closely resembled his own personality.
Mr Le Mesurier’s most famous and popular role was as the bumbling, upper class SergeantWilson in the popular BBC wartime sitcom Dad’s Army which ran from 1968 to 1977. He was encouraged to accept the part because his good friend Clive Dunn had also been cast as Corporal Jones.
Mr Le Mesurier also gave a memorable performance in the 1971 award-winning Dennis Potter play Traitor. For this role he won a Society of Film and Television Arts Best TV Actor award.
In the later years of his career Mr Le Mesurier provided the voice for many characters including Flour Grader Fred, the little man in a bowler hat who advertised Homepride Flour. In 1975 he narrated the children’s television character Bod for the BBC. He also portrayed Jacob Marley in an adaptation of A Christmas Carol.
He also appeared in several well received radio shows including The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy in 1980 and The Lord of the Rings in 1981. He also had small parts in Brideshead Revisited and The Goodies.
During his life Mr Le Mesurier was married three times. His first marriage was to the actress June Melville in 1939 whom he divorced in 1947. In 1949 he married the comedienne Hattie Jacques. They had two sons together, Kim and Robin, though they eventually separated in 1965. He married his third wife, the actress Joan Malin, in 1965.
Towards the end of his time on Dad’s Army Mr Le Mesurier became seriously ill, causing him to lose a great deal of weight.
He died from a stomach haemorrhage. He was buried at the Church of St George the Martyr in Ramsgate, Kent. He wrote his own death notice in The Times which read: “John le Mesurier wishes it to be known that he conked out on November 15th. He sadly misses family and friends.”
Before he fell into a coma his last words were reported to have been “It’s all been rather lovely.”
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